the debate over whether they need a hardass coach or not is irrelevant. the fact is, whether they need one or not, this group will NOT respond to it. they're veterans, they've been there and done that, they're cocky, and most importantly, they're intelligent. they're too smart to be afraid of a coach because they know the reality of their situations; that as long as gillis is there, they're safe.
in fact, i personally believe that the collective intelligence of the team was both the key to their success in 2011 and to their failures since. they're smarter than the other teams, and they know it. they were smart enough in 2011 to look around the league and see that they were, on paper, very clearly the best team in the league, and that gave them extraordinary confidence. likewise, in the years since, they've been smart enough to be very aware of their shortcomings and of the fact that their manager has done nothing to bolster those areas, which has led to a sense of defeatism.
it's also led to the hubris evidenced in bieksa's statement, and most of his interviews in fact, and even more worryingly in the interviews given by the team captain where he blindly states that the team is playing well outside of the powerplay.